Continuous conveyer



Nov. 29, 19380 A. F. WHITE CONTINUOUS CONVEYER Filed April 22, 1958 driven I'm:

Q. F. 10MB Er .6640.

Patented Nov. '29, 1938 PATENT OFFICE CONTINUOUS CONVEYER Albert F. White, Toronto,

Application April 22,

Claims.

This invention relates to a continuous flow conveyer having conveyer chains moving in closed conduits for conveying grain and other bulk material that can be poured.

Conveyers of the above general type are known in which flights substantially filling the cross section of the conveyer casing are employed and are rigidly secured to the links of the conveyer chain at right angles thereto. When such conveyers are used with the rising leg at or near the vertical, trouble is often experienced in completely clearing the flights of their load when they arrive at the discharge opening of the rising leg.

So also when warping or bending of part of the casing occurs in the plane of the chain carrying sprocket, extra friction is created between the flights and casing since the chain tends to move in a straight line to the driving sprocket while the flights must follow the bends of the casing.

The discharging trouble may be overcomein part at least by inclining the flights from back to front with reference to the rising leg as in my prior United States Patent No. 2,066,866,

dated January 5th, 1937, but the second trouble will remain.

My object therefore is to devise a continuous flow conveyer which will overcome both the troubles referred to without material increase in the cost of the apparatus.

I attain my object by means of constructions which may be briefly described as follows. The conveyer casing is formed with a substantially entirely closed rising leg and a bottom loop and has an inlet to the loop and a front outlet in the rising leg. In the casing there is movably mounted a conveyer element comprising an endless chain having substantially fiat flights hung therefrom by means of short hangers which are fixed to the flights and are pivotally secured to the chain. Just above the outlet is positioned a sprocket wheel carrying the chain and having its teeth pitched apart to co-operate with the chain links and so that each successive flight as it reaches the sprocket wheel is caught by a tooth of the sprocket and is tilted to spill any material remaining thereon after the flight has passed the outlet.

The invention is hereinafter more fully described and is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of my improved elevator;

Ontario, Canada 1938, Serial No. 203,492 R Fig. 2 a front elevation of the same, partly broken away;

Fig. 3 a side elevation of part of a bent rising leg, showing the adaptation of the conveyer flights thereto; v

Fig. 4 a detail in front elevation of a link and connected flight;

Fig. 5 a plan view of the same parts; and

Fig, 6 a side view of the same parts.

In the drawing like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in the different figures.

The apparatus comprises a conveyer casing and a conveyer element operating therein. The casing may be of any ordinary construction and will usually be rectangular in cross section. While the shape of the casing may vary in the arrangement of its parts, it is shown as comprising a rising leg I and a descending leg 4 connected at the top by the top loop 3 and at the bottom by the bottom loop 2. The bottom loop 2 is formed with the inlet 5, while at the upper end of the rising leg I is located the outlet or discharge 6. The rising leg I of the conveyer casing is shown as vertical, but it will be understood that it may lie at different angles to the horizontal plane and still fall within the scope of my invention.

Within the upper loop is positioned the sprocket wheel I by means of which the elevator elements will usually be driven. It will not usually be necessary to locate a sprocket wheel at the lower loop.

The conveyer element comprises an endless chain mounted to move longitudinally of the casing and to be driven by the sprocket wheel I and flights carried by the chain.

The chain is formed of the rigid links 8 which are preferably arranged as follows. Each link is shown as formed with a double hinge knuckle at its upper end and a single hinge knuckle or eye at its lower end, the links being pivotally connected by the pins l5. Integral with the lower end or single knuckle of each link is a short arm II which extends towards the forward side of the chain having reference to its position in the rising leg. Pivotally connected with each short arm II is the short hanger 12, the lower end of which is secured to a flight l3, preferably as near the centre of the same as possible. Each flight, it will be noted, has a gap cut in its rear side to pass on either side of the links 8 of theconveyer chain. As will be seen on reference to Fig. 2, the sprocket wheel 1 is double and therebetween pass the links 8,

the double knuckles of the links engaging the teeth of each part of the sprocket.

It will be noted particularly on reference to Fig. 1 of the drawing that the rear sides of the flights are so positioned and the teeth of the sprocket wheel are of such a length that, when a flight reaches a position just above the outlet 6, the rear edge of a flight catches on one of the teeth of the sprocket wheel, as shown, which tilts the flight so as to dump any material remaining thereon after the main load has passed off by gravity down the outlet 6. Perfect discharge of the load is thus obtained when the rising leg is in a vertical position, as shown, and also, of course, in any angular position intermediate the vertical and horizontal.

Another advantage of the freely suspended flights is shown in Fig. 3 in which the casing is shown bent in a direction from back to front.

While the chain under the strain to which it is subjected tends to travel in a direct line and carry the flights with it, the latter being freely hung can swing to thus avoid extra heavy friction against the convex sides of the interior of the casing.

It must be understood, however, that various modifications of the invention might readily be devised using the same principle which is the suspension of the flights by means of rigid arms from the links of the conveyer chain.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A continuous flow elevator comprising a casing including a substantially entirely enclosed rising leg, an inlet at the bottom of the rising leg and a front outlet at the upper part of the said leg; and a conveyer element comprising an endless chain mounted to move longitudinally of the casing, a plurality of conveyer flights each substantially filling the cross section of the rising leg, and hangers rigidly secured to the flights and pivotally connected to the chain whereby each flight hangs freely from the chain.

2. An elevator according to claim 1 in which a sprocket wheel is provided above the outlet and with which the chain meshes, the ends of the teeth of tho sprocket wheel extending to a position in which they engage the rear sides of successive flights to tilt them as they reach the sprocket wheel.

3. A continuous flow elevator comprising a casing including a substantially entirely enclosed rising leg, an inlet at the bottom of the rising leg and a front outlet at the upper part of the said leg; and a conveyer element comprising an endless chain mounted to move longitudinally of the casing and formed of rigid pivotally connected links, a plurality of short arms rigidly connected to the said links and extending forwardly having reference to the rising leg of the elevator, a plurality of conveyer flights each substantially filling the cross section of the rising leg, and hangers each rigidly secured to a flight and pivoted to the free end of one of the short arms whereby each flight hangs freely from the chain.

4. A continuous flow elevator comprising a casv ing including a substantially entirely enclosed rising leg, an inlet at the bottom of the rising leg and a front outlet at the upper part of the said leg; and a conveyer element comprising an endless chain mounted to move longitudinally of the casing and formed of rigid pivotally connected links, a plurality of short .arms rigidly connected to the said links at one end thereof and extending forwardly having reference to the rising leg of the elevator, a plurality of conveyer flights each substantially filling the cross section of the rising leg, and hangers each rig-.

idly secured to a flight and pivoted to the free end of one of the short arms whereby each flight hangs freely from the chain..

5. An elevator according to claim 4 in which a sprocket wheel is provided above the outlet and with which the chain meshes, the ends of the teeth of the sprocket wheel extending to a position in which they engage the rear sides of successive flights to tilt them as they reach. the sprocket wheel.

ALBERT F. WHITE. 

